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Ben's Week In Review: November 11

I'm assuming at some point, I'll get a break. ...but the way the schedule is, maybe not. 'sigh'

Come on, that Square Enix comment was FUNNY

I almost busted a gut when I read what former Square boss Hisashi Suzuki said about the Square Enix merger. I was laughing hard. I mean, it's one thing to have all the fans say it and even journalists say it; it's quite another to have a former president of the company say the move was a total failure. It was even funnier to read that part about S-E having "no vision." It's hilarious in a ridiculously painful sort of way, partly because it's so effing bewildering. Everyone seems to get it but Square Enix. Is it something in the air filtration system? Are they all just a little dizzy due to a gas leak? What's going on? It's like this huge joke because the entire world outside S-E's walls is befuddled and disappointed, while everyone inside those walls doesn't seem to have one damn clue.

What sort of crazy pills must you be popping to stand up there, unveil Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, and act all proud? Even stranger, how are you completely deaf to the backlash? How? It's unavoidable in all respects and now you've got a former company head saying you suck so hey, maybe that's a clue! But no, they don't get it and they won't get it. It's so absurd it's downright hysterical.

No, David, I don't want to control anything with my brain

There isn't a bone in my body that doesn't respect David Cage. But as is typically the case when it comes to visionaries and innovators, they tend to take things too far. They push beyond a certain limit because after all, they have to if they want to retain the title of "visionary" and "innovator." Unfortunately, this also means they're sort of blind to other factors that may seriously hinder the next step. So when Cage said the future could involve us controlling games with our minds, I just had to shake my head. No, David. This time, the line you crossed leads to dangerous things, none of which we're familiar with enough to tackle. The ironic part about this is that Cage has said, on numerous occasions, that he doesn't even care about technology. That in fact, it's completely secondary.

And I'm down with that. 100% agree. But controlling a video game with our minds is only about technology and nothing else, so I'm sort of confused by his sentiment. And by the way, if he's right, and they want to start playing around with my brain, I'm gonna take a pass. Thanks.

Personal gaming update

Right. What "personal gaming update?" This time of year, I'm so swamped with reviews, I have no time to play anything I want. Assassin's Creed III is just going to have to wait a while longer; all I can do is grab a few minutes to play Rock Band Blitz or something, and that's it. I've got Need for Speed: Most Wanted for the Vita, LittleBigPlanet Karting, and PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, not to mention the inevitable Call of Duty: Black Ops II this week and the upcoming Hitman: Absolution. CRIPES. By the way, the Assassin's Creed III: Liberation review is done but I can't put it up just yet due to a technical mishap. I apologize for that but don't worry, it's coming. If you need to know, I give it a 7.5.

The only good news is that there really isn't anything else I'm determined to play this year, so once all the work is done, I'm clear to play ACIII for a solid 6-8 weeks (I think). I mean, Far Cry 3 could theoretically get in the way, but I wasn't a super huge fan of FC2 (as good as it was), so I think I'll be free into January. By the way, the lateness of my Week in Review isn't due to anything besides the fact that I was, once again, just a tad preoccupied. But it's here now, all right? ;)

Comments (30 posts)

Playing games with your brain directly just seems way out there, just way out there. Don't think I want to jack into any sort of online enabled device. Things are getting a little to cyber punk...

PGU: I took a bit of a break from DOA5. I've been chilling with some Uncharted 3. It's something I haven't played since it released last year. I'm enjoying myself. And those graphics are just so nice. I go from BF3 on my PC with crazy settings and I'm still very impressed by the work Naughty Dog puts up in their games. btw, I think BF3's single player is as boring as they come for me and shooters. The graphics are the only thing keeping me. I'm certain of it. I've also officially started Xenogears. I held out for Suikoden II for a good while and Konami just couldn't feel my force tremors, or something. But I'm only a little ways in on Xeno and it's just starting to really compel me. At first I was like, "oh come on I don't want to spin a camera... and I can run AND jump AND fall off of ledges?" Is this PSX era? Anyhow, the story is starting to draw me in, at first I was a little unsure if it was gonna.. but for heaven's sake can these jRPG's NOT have a story about a guy who has some mysterious past he can't remember? Amnesia and time travel is stale. Please no more amnesia and time travel.

Okay, so I aced my big-o CS exam with a 95% booya! happy about that. I also finished sketching my Double Dragon tribute art. Check it out if you dare. http://david-mason.deviantart.com/#/d5kq5zc

JRPGs are pretty steeped in anime, so ya get more amnesia than you'd like, the key is just enjoying how different visions use the same core story elements in new ways, i.e. Cloud being unaware of a severe dissociative disorder which lets you guide him through a Freudian reconstruction of his psyche.

The Last Story?Wii? What huh?A few questions I have.Does a protagonist suffer from amnesia?How bad do the controls suck?Are the graphics better than FFVIII?Are you buying a Wii U for Last Story 2? (Or Pokemon: Colors of the Rainbow Universe?)

lol, I got it for my 3 nieces, then I got woken up by a cheapassgamer text one night that Amazon had the Limited Edition for $8 so I bought it.

No Amnesia but the touch of former Final Fantasy master Hiranobu Sakaguchi is unmistakable.

The controls are about the worst thing I could ever have imagined. The graphics are... cloudy. Sort of like if you played a PS2 JRPG after smearing Vaseline all over your TV screen. BUT the voices are great British fare and the story is very good.

I thought The Last Story was great. Yea the controls are unique and take a little getting used to. In no way a deal breaker. Keep in mind the game came out more than 2 years ago, but I agree it is a bit cloudy looking but still looks good.

This and Xenoblade Chronicles are great examples of trying something new with RPGs but still keeps what makes a jrpg great. Hope you enjoy the game till its end!

I wish these "innovators" would just continue to push story telling, gameplay, and graphics. Cage is brilliant, but I want to play games the old fashioned way, it's way better!

PGU: Well I took advantage of Targets buy 2 get 1 deal and got AC3, NFS: Most Wanted, and Borderlands 2. I still havnt finished RE6 and it's been all NFS since I picked it up. Until sometime last week some friends and I popped in Borderlands 2 and that's all I've been playing since.

there not deaf, just ignorant and selfish.they see COD selling 10s of millions of units and think hey if we make our games like that will sell 10Ms of units as well.there in this bubble belief that that by abandoning their fans there magically going to get new fans twice fold.sadly it dont work like that!someone needs to get a pin and burst their little bubble.......

its not really as much as can we, but why would we?why do you want to play games with your mind?this puts me in perfect mind of the new AR demo headset $ony has been showing off.its basically a tech demo, it starts off with you putting the device on and shows a normal clip, than the lady who introduced you into the room turns into a monster and leaps at you.than everything goes back normal they do some more calibrations, than it goes back to scaring the sh*t out of you!just makes me worried could this send people bonkers, and tie the world between reality and fake?if its AR, your surroundings are the same, so how can you tell what is real and what is not?just seems like a very dangerous thing to be messing with.

thats why im much more into VR, i cant wait till my occulus rift demo kit comes!its been so long coming, i mean remember the 80s and the virtual boy, and the cinemas, oh so many VR tech going around.than it fell down the drain, and only now are we finally starting to get back onto it.its really interesting to see how VR, and also "wearable computers" like the google device, or even what valve are apparently working on.just have to wonder though, will it be finally done justice?or will it be another virtual boy?only time will tell.......

just finished halo 4, god what a game!see ubisoft THAT is how you finish a game!ties up the story, yet keeps plenty open for a sequel.its been so long since a game made me cry, but that ending was just so beautiful!spent a few days trying to get into most wanted, but its just so god dam boring!what happened to the speed breakers, cool down areas, everything that made cop chasing in the series so much fun?god dam it, again, why does every sequel this year have to be so god dam simplified!christ, im starting to feel like games are made by f*cking 10 year olds!simple, simple, SIMPLE!!!!!!!!

went into the city today was pleasantly surprised to see ninty had set up a wiiu demonstration booth.got to try out a few of the launch titles, and especially rayman ledgends.god it just made me remember about origins and i miss it so much so im going to start that back up tonight.

BTW there won't be a female GTA V character, the news we have is thus:

The leading men are named Michael, Trevor, and Franklin, and each comes from a vastly different background. Michael is a middle-aged retiree with two kids living a life of luxury with massive wealth accumulated over years of successful bank robberies. When his wife starts burning through his fortune, he must return to the life he left behind in the new city of Los Santos. Trevor is a similarly hardened career criminal and former military pilot in his early forties. Violent tendencies and drug addiction make Trevor something of a loose cannon, but once upon a time, he and Michael shared at least one bank heist together. Finally, there's Franklin, a young hustler who makes a living by selling luxury cars to people who can't afford them and then playing repo man when they default on their payments.

You can switch control to a different character at any time through a quick-select menu that will take you into the sky, Google Earth-style, and drop you down into someone else's shoes, wherever they may be. (They will be living their lives while you aren't controlling them)

Been playing Assassins Creed Liberation on the Vita. I'm personally loving it. It plays exactly like Assassins Creed 2 and to have this on a handheld is phenomenal...

I can't understand the criticism it has been getting. It does have a few frame rate issues on occasions but running around the rooftops of New Orleans and killing soldiers never gets old!

If someone had told me a few years ago that I would have Uncharted, Assassins Creed and Fifa close to console quality on a handheld I would never have believed them. As long as you accept that they are slightly cut down versions you will be fine. Love my Vita.

While controlling games with sensors attached to our skulls, monitoring subtle changes in brainwave activity, may seem a bit science fiction now, I believe this technology will be available one day. We r all likely to be old, ancient or passed on by then, but never say never. PGU: Unfortunately I'm skimping on gaming for next few weeks, as I'm preparing for the birth of my 3rd child. Baby room furniture assembly, here I come! (joy)

The most exciting thing for me the last week is undoubtedly that Steam finally has arrived on Linux. I know, I know, this is a PS3 focused site, but damn that is big news. I just have to share it :). Also, it *can* be of interest also for the console world:

Gaming on Linux has gained an insane momentum these days, and all this does *not* happen just because of the few percent Linux desktop users out there all of a sudden became such an interesting market opportunity. There gotta be something bigger brewing.

So we might just as well say the obvious out loud:A new console, based on Linux, is in the making somewhere and will be unveiled sometime in the very near future. Maybe already at the upcoming E3?

And my reasoning is this: With Valve behind it this console will most likely *not* be an entry-level low-budget console (ala the Android based console Ouya) but a high-end competitor on the next-gen consoles market.Last edited by Beamboom on 11/11/2012 8:09:08 AM

That is actually a very interesting question, World. Do I "hope" or "expect"?

I am very split in this question. The Linux fan in me screams "yes yes YES" for so many Linux-related reasons. But the Sony fan in me get a really worried expression on his face: I am very comfortable with Playstation being my console of choice and stick to that. I don't want a stack of consoles. I am a one-console-kinda guy.

But a Linux based console... Especially if the specs are high-end? Good Lord almighty, it would simply be impossible to resist.

I read that what ever the fans don't want is probably going to be the next setting for AC. So maybe that's what SE is doing? Maybe they have this twisted, demented thought process going on. Their hopeless and it will take the leaders of that company to right the ship once it's under water financially.

Games being controlled by our brains reminds of that funny scene in Back to the Future II! But, after laughing, it's a big no thank you from me!

PGU:Nothing but ACIIIL and I just love it. I have about 15 hours into it right now. I just keep fooling around in New Orleans. I have all my collectibles. The combat is so fun even though I find it Extremely easy. Not sure why it's so easy. The blow darts are a lot of fun to mess with. The missions have been good too. I am trying to get full sync on all of them. I have failed some but it's a lot of fun trying them over to get full sync.

Looking forward to Monday night and Call of Duty BOII midnight release! Hopefully I will be able to pick up LEGO LOTR at the same time. Cannot wait to try the new Zombies and MP. My son and I will eat up LEGO LOTR!

I'm assuming the technical mishap for AC3: Liberation is that the save file became corrupted. Wish I would have knew that was a problem before I bought it and worked toward the plat just to see it lost with little left to do.

I finally got to play AC3 last night. Played for a couple hours, I'm just getting into the meat of the story. The combat feels nice and fluid, the gameplay feels different somehow, and the graphics... Good but not the good I expected. I find it really irritating that in a cut-scene the mouths of those talking don't move once in awhile. And sometimes the sound is catching up with the movement of the mouths. That really takes away from it.

yea, and also back then Sakaguchi was the executive vice president of the Squaresoft and the main story writer for many classic Square JRPGs, he is the soul of the JRPGs, and he still has it. being the last best example The Last Story....since his departure and the merge, SE has never been the same and I am not surprised to the least that they have "no vision"

oh, yeah, for sure. Lost Odyssey is the most authentic and classic JRPG this generation, said many times :) its dream scrips are beautifully written and most profound I have ever had in video gaming..Last edited by BigBoss4ever on 11/11/2012 9:23:29 PM